TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--In its newly updated "Standards and Guidance for Disclosure and Model
Disclosure Policy," the Canadian Investor Relations Institute [CIRI]
provides a 'best practices' resource for reporting issuers and industry
professionals that reinforces the central role of a simultaneous,
broadly disseminated news release in achieving full and fair disclosure.

The fourth edition of the CIRI guidelines, last updated in 2006, takes
into account regulatory and accounting changes, social media, and other
factors that have changed the investor relations landscape since its
most recent revision. The guidelines encourage issuers to go beyond
minimum legal requirements and to promote effective disclosure that meet
the needs and expectations of the investor community, notes Tom Enright,
CIRI president and CEO, in his preface to the report.

According to the timely disclosure policies of the TSX Exchanges and the
CNSX, a full-text news release that is broadly disseminated via a
sanctioned news service is the only acceptable method of disclosing
material information. Business Wire is one of several approved news
dissemination services in the Canadian marketplace.

Citing regulatory criteria, the report specifically notes that
standalone web postings, conference calls, and other complementary
communications channels do not meet Canadian disclosure requirements.
Issuers, however, are encouraged to use additional delivery platforms to
augment a simultaneous, widely disseminated news release.

CIRI's Standards and Guidelines Report notes: "As material information
should be released in a manner designed to reach the widest public
audience possible, including individual investors, companies are
encouraged to use various technologies to supplement the news release.
Some of the most obvious technologies include conference calls,
webcasts, email, fax, video conferences, company websites, and more
recently, corporate blogs, RSS feeds, podcasts, and social networking
sites. While new technologies are important and useful ways to
disseminate information, they are not substitutes for a broadly
disseminated news release."

In a cautionary note, CIRI reminds issuers not to post news releases on
to their web sites until after confirmation that the release has been
disseminated by a news wire service.

CIRI also spotlights practices that while acceptable in other
jurisdictions, are viewed as selective disclosure under Canada's
regulatory framework.

"Members of the media should not receive material information on an
exclusive, embargoed, or selective basis and should receive material
information at the same time as everyone else: when a full public
announcement is made. A broadcast or print interview where a company
discusses previously non-public material information is not considered
adequate disclosure in Canada."

Copies of CIRI's "Standards and Guidance For Disclosure" are available
for purchase through the organization.

Full Disclosure: Business Wire is the sponsor of CIRI's Standards and
Guidance for Disclosure. However, Business Wire's involvement in the
project came after CIRI completed its revisions. Business Wire had no
role whatsoever in influencing CIRI's research and conclusions.

About Business Wire

Business Wire, a Berkshire
Hathaway company, celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2011
as the global leader in press
release distribution and regulatory
disclosure. Public relations and investor relations professionals
rely on Business Wire for both broad-based and targeted market reach. A
recognized disclosure service in the United States, Canada and a dozen
European countries, Business Wire handles XBRL tagging, document
formatting and regulatory filing into EDGAR, SEDAR and other systems.
Business Wire provides online newsroom hosting and integration services
as well as search engine optimization, mobile distribution and detailed
measurement on every press release. Its patented NX delivery platform
provides simultaneous full-text posting of Business Wire content to news
systems and websites in virtually any country or language. With 31
bureaus worldwide, Business Wire offers local service and global reach.

CIRI is a professional, not-for-profit association of executives
responsible for communication between public corporations, investors and
the financial community. CIRI contributes to the transparency and
integrity of the Canadian capital market by advancing the practice of
investor relations, the professional competency of its members and the
stature of the profession. With 600 members, CIRI is the world’s second
largest society of investor relations professionals. For further
information, please visit CIRI.org.